The Dean's Circle consists of donors who have significantly contributed to the Ira A. Fulton College in the last year. The generous friends and alumni in the Dean's Circle have made wonderful learning opportunities possible for our students.

The Dean's Circle consists of donors who have significantly contributed to the Ira A. Fulton College in the last year. The generous friends and alumni in the Dean's Circle have made wonderful learning opportunities possible for our students.

Thomas Fletcher named chair of Chemical Engineering Department

Thomas Fletcher has been named the chair for the BYU Chemical Engineering Department, effective June 1.

Fletcher received his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering from BYU in 1979, followed by both a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from BYU in 1980 and 1983 respectively. Following his education, Fletcher went to work at the Combustion Research Facility at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, California.

He began working at BYU in 1991 and is now the director of the Advanced Combustion Engineering Research Center (ACERC). Along with being a professor in the Chemical Engineering Department, Fletcher has been serving as associate chair.

With more than 35 years of experience, Fletcher is an expert in pyrolysis of coal and low-grade fuels such as oil shale and biomass. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed journal articles, six books or book chapters and 214 presentations at technical conferences. His research interests include pyrolysis, combustion and soot formation in oxy-fired coal boilers, oil shale chemistry, use of synfuels in gas turbines and fundamentals of pyrolysis and ignition in live vegetation related to wildland fires.

Fletcher will take over for current chair, Randy Lewis, who has been serving for six years. Lewis will return to teaching.